STARKVILLE — With 1:23 left in the fourth quarter, Mississippi State women’s basketball called timeout after getting the ball over halfcourt on offense.
The Bulldogs held a slight 61-57 lead over Texas A&M and looked to further stretch the lead and potentially seal the deal with a basket.
Coming off the timeout, forward Jessika Carter got a good look down low but couldn’t finish at the rim as the Aggies hauled in the rebound and looked to outlet.
However, out of nowhere came JerKaila Jordan, who despite scoring just one point had a masterful defensive performance, catching the Aggies off guard as she came up with a steal.
MSU ended up getting fouled that next possession as the game came down to free throws, and the Bulldogs didn’t miss a beat, going 9 of 10 from the line in the final 46 seconds of play and pulling out a 70-62 win over Texas A&M on Sunday afternoon.
“It speaks volumes about her because she goes for 20-plus the last two games and then tonight, she’s 0 for 5,” Mississippi State coach Sam Purcell said. “Most kids, they don’t play defense because they’re emotional, but she didn’t and that’s her character. That’s why she’s special.”
Jordan finished with four steals on the night, leading the Bulldogs, who had 11 steals in the win, but this game started out much differently than it finished up.
Mississippi State (18-7, 7-5 Southeastern Conference) got off to a fast start, taking a 10-0 lead off the jump on the Aggies (6-16, 1-11 SEC), who despite their record, have played well against the best of the best in conference play.
Early on, things were very much trending toward a blowout, but slowly but surely, Texas A&M clawed its way back into contention.
“We’ve played them before and they know our style just as well as us,” guard Anastasia Hayes said. “They’re a great team. The SEC is a hard league, but we just have to execute and that’s what we did.
“We played hard, and I feel like that’s what helped us tonight.”
The Aggies got as close as 59-57 in the fourth quarter, but like what transpired in the final minute of play, free throw shooting carried the Bulldogs to victory on Sunday.
Mississippi State shot just 2 of 9 from the field, but went 14 of 16 (87.5 percent) at the line, shooting 21 of 27 (77.8 percent) from the line overall compared to Texas A&M, who attempted just 11 free throws the entire game.
Not only were the Bulldogs getting chances at the line, but they were executing just as well.
“We practice free throws, we practice free throws under pressure,” Ahlana Smith said. “We know that we have to knock free throws down. Sometimes, a game might come down to a free throw or two.
“We just have a lot of emphasis on that and make sure we put up a lot during practice.”
Coming off a tough two-game stretch the week previous, Mississippi State had three games this week and went 3-0, signaling a shift in team mentality and confidence as SEC play enters its final two weeks of competition.
The Bulldogs are most definitely thinking about March and thinking about making a deep run in March, and when talking about being locked in, this is as locked in as this team has been the entire season.
What a better time to be locked in than with the NCAA tournament looming in just over a month’s time.
“That’s where we’re trying to go,” Hayes said. “That’s where we’re trying to make it to. We’re both seniors. This is our last go-round, so that’s what we want to do.”
Mississippi State will travel to play Missouri in its next game at 7 p.m. Thursday, looking to extend the winning streak to four straight.
Theo DeRosa reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @Theo_DeRosa.
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